Whatever else you might say about Chandika Hathurusingha, the man does not do incognito. If you have paid him any attention over the past few years, chances are you have an opinion. More than likely, it is mighty sharp.

"He has great cricket knowledge," is something people say of him. Well that one, almost everybody can agree on. But what about: "He is a great coach"? This is not so universally held.

If you are a Hathurusingha hater, you probably hail from Bangladesh or Sri Lanka. His tenure at New South Wales did not seem to prompt such polarising opinions. In much higher profile roles in South Asia, though, where sports meld with politics, and cricket plays a role in the national wellbeing (more true for some South Asian states than others), he has been an unapologetic ruffler of feathers.

A month into his job, in Bangladesh, the superstar in the team, Shakib Al Hasan, was suspended for some months for "serious misbehaviour" with the coach. In Sri Lanka, Hathurusingha was part of a decision to sack Angelo Mathews as captain, and axe him from the limited-overs sides entirely over fitness issues last September. It was the selection committee, then headed by Graeme Labrooy, that finalised that call, but months later, Mathews' relationship with Hathurusingha had soured to the extent that in the course of batting an entire Test-match day in Wellington, Mathews dropped to the ground, completed a set of press-ups after and gestured pointedly towards the dressing room. It was only a little more polite than flipping the bird.

ALSO READ: Nuwan Pradeep ruled out of Bangladesh game after blow to bowling hand

And yet, can you argue with Hathurusingha's results? On his watch, Bangladesh made the knockouts in a World Cup for the first time, beat India and South Africa in ODI series at home, defeated Sri Lanka in an away Test, and made the semi-final of the 2017 Champions Trophy. In general, they became a serious force in world cricket for the first time. Specific players may have had grouses; Mahmudullah was dropped for the 100th Test - the one they won in Colombo - and Mominul Haque was edged out of the Test side. But if you try to argue that Hathurusingha did not leave Bangladesh (or should that be abandon Bangladesh?) in an immeasurably better place than he found them, then friend, you have let your Hathu-hate get the better of you.

Among the cornerstones to his success in Bangladesh, Hathurusingha felt, was his insistence that he be part of the selection committee. "If I'm responsible for the fortunes of the team, I should be given the power to choose it," has been his reasoning. Sri Lanka Cricket, who had practically pleaded with Hathurusingha to be their coach for three years, had initially allowed him this.

But here's the thing, Hathu: SLC is an untameable beast. He had the SLC board president on-side in his first few months in charge of Sri Lanka, just as he had done practically throughout his Bangladesh stint. But what if the SLC head is himself so plugged into the nation's political machinations, that the moment the governmental weather changed, that SLC president was ousted by judicial writ? Late last year, Hathurusingha lost his allies in administration, and with them the guarantee that he could have his way with the side. In February, following Sri Lanka's modest tour of New Zealand and their woeful Tests in Australia, he was in serious danger of being sacked by the governmental arm that had installed itself in place of a regular board.

And so we come to Bristol at the World Cup, where Hathurusingha is ostensibly head coach of Sri Lanka but, weirdly, it is on the opposition that bears the clearer marks of his influence. Even his critics in Bangladesh would concede that it was under Hathurusingha that this team developed the steel required to win; that it was on his watch that they began to seize key moments, the way they'd done in the victory against South Africa last week. During the Hathu years, Tamim Iqbal had become more consistent, Soumya Sarkar had begun to flourish, Mustafizur Rahman was thrown in and adorned, Mehidy Hasan got a start, and even Mahmudullah hit those back-to-back World Cup tons.

Compare this to the Sri Lanka side, which was in turmoil long before Hathurusingha arrived, and has not ceased to be in flux despite his best efforts. Last year, Hathurusingha had elevated Dinesh Chandimal to leadership, and then the selectors changed, and now Chandimal has barely been heard from for months. Captain, instead, is Dimuth Karunaratne - a man Hathurusingha seems happy to work with especially following the historic Test win in South Africa, but not one he would have ideally chosen for such honours. Save, perhaps, for Thisara Perera, there is no one in this ODI side that appears visibly altered by Hathurusingha's 18-month presence.

A good run at the World Cup could be key to changing all that. The historic Test win in South Africa, to which Hathurusingha did genuinely contribute, bought him goodwill, but it is limited-overs advances that will swing open the door those victories propped ajar. Sri Lanka still have Australia, England and India to play, so the match on Tuesday is virtually must-win. For the coach, a defeat might be a haunting by his own past successes, but nothing no one didn't expect. But if a victory helps light up Sri Lanka's campaign, maybe the team will switch to a smoother track. Perhaps Hathurusingha could still become the kind of transformer for Sri Lanka he once was for Bangladesh.

MINNEAPOLIS -- After months of uncertainty surrounding the status of his contract for the upcoming season, veteran tight end Kyle Rudolph gained some clarity with regard to his future on Monday evening.

A league source told ESPN that Rudolph agreed to terms of a contract extension with the Minnesota Vikings and will sign his new deal on Tuesday morning, the same day the Vikings begin their three-day mandatory minicamp. Rudolph's new deal is worth $36 million over four years, which will keep him in Minnesota through the 2023 season, a source told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Rudolph relayed the news in a heartfelt message on Twitter in which he reflected upon the major events that have occurred in his life both in and out of football since he was selected 43rd overall in the 2011 draft by Minnesota, where he has spent his entire career to date. The ninth-year tight end married his wife, Jordan, had three children and has been an active member in the Twin Cities community through his philanthropic work with the establishment of Kyle Rudolph's End Zone at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital.

#UnfinishedBusiness #Skol pic.twitter.com/ooOXJruWFF

— Kyle Rudolph (@KyleRudolph82) June 11, 2019

Rudolph's new deal is expected to lower his cap hit of $7.625 million, which would help the Vikings with their current salary-cap situation. Minnesota, according to ESPN's roster management system, had less than $1.3 million in cap space prior to negotiating the terms of Rudolph's new deal.

Earlier this spring, the Vikings drafted Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. with the 50th overall pick. Throughout the spring offseason program, coaches have relayed the importance of the roles both tight ends will play in Minnesota's offense with their complementary skillsets.

TORONTO -- Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant appeared to reinjure the right calf that had kept him out for a month during the second quarter of a 106-105 win in Game 5 of the NBA Finals against the Toronto Raptors on Monday night.

The Warriors said Durant would have an MRI on Tuesday to further evaluate the injury, which they announced as a right lower-leg injury.

"I'm hurting deep in the soul right now I can't lie," Durant wrote as a part of an Instagram Story post. "But seeing my brothers get this win was like taking a shot of tequilla, I got new life lol."

The play in which Durant was hurt happened with 9 minutes, 51 seconds left in the second quarter as he tried to drive by Raptors big man Serge Ibaka. Durant was just above the 3-point line on the right side, dribbled between his legs and went to drive with his left hand when his leg appeared to give, causing him to lose the ball.

Durant went down in pain after taking a couple of steps, grabbing the lower part of his calf on the sideline. Durant remained on the floor for a few moments as the Raptors came down the floor and made a basket. The Warriors called timeout as Rick Celebrini, the Warriors' director of sports medicine and performance, raced to the floor to check on Durant.

Durant was then escorted straight to the locker room for further evaluation. As he made his way off the floor, both Warriors and Raptors players offered him some well wishes as the crowd inside soldout Scotiabank Arena chanted, "KD! KD!" Warriors teammate Andre Iguodala was by Durant's side with Celebrini as Durant was helped off the floor. Warriors guard Stephen Curry followed Durant into the locker room as well.

Durant walked by the media workroom inside Scotiabank Arena on crutches wearing a walking boot on his right leg on his way to exit the arena. He was accompanied by Celebrini and Warriors general manager Bob Myers.

Meanwhile, the Warriors also lost Kevon Looney, who aggravated his shoulder injury and was also ruled out to return.

Durant had not played since injuring his right calf on May 8 against the Houston Rockets in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals. He went through Sunday's light practice and Monday's shootaround and was initially listed as a game-time decision before Steve Kerr confirmed before the game that Durant would start.

Kerr said Durant would play in "short bursts," but Durant left the game after playing 12 of the first 14 minutes of the game and scoring 11 points.

Kerr acknowledged after Monday's shootaround that the uncertainty surrounding Durant's status has been a tedious process for all involved.

"It's been frustrating," Kerr said. "We talked about it when the injury occurred. Pretty vague. A lot of gray area. One of the first things Rick [Celebrini] told me was, with calves, it could be a couple weeks, it could be a couple months. It's not often you have injuries like that. Usually you kind of get that four-to-six week thing or two-to-three weeks. So, calves, Achilles, muscular stuff is a little tougher to gauge than a joint. When you combine that with the scrutiny and the media coverage of the Finals, you've just been in the spotlight -- he's been in the spotlight -- and it's been tough."

Kerr was asked if he had been told that Durant was also dealing with an Achilles injury. Kerr previously stated initially after Durant's injury in May that he was assured it was not an Achilles injury that Durant was dealing with.

"No," Kerr said. "I just threw out 'Achilles.' I didn't mean Kevin's Achilles. I mean when you get non-joint issues, muscular issues are tougher to input in terms of how long a recovery will be. That's my understanding."

With Kevin Durant reportedly planning to play, the Golden State Warriors have gone from underdogs to favorites at some sportsbooks in the hours leading up to tipoff of Game 5 of the NBA Finals.

The Toronto Raptors, who hold a 3-1 lead in the series, opened as high as 3.5-point favorites in what could be a clinching Game 5. The line started shrinking Sunday, when it was announced Durant would practice with the Warriors. On Monday afternoon, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Durant plans to play, and the point spread continued to drop.

Caesars Sportsbook, as well as other sportsbooks in Las Vegas and New Jersey, have made the Warriors 1-point favorites.

"The money on the Warriors started coming in on Sunday morning," Jeff Stoneback, director of risk for MGM race and sports, told ESPN. "It really hasn't stopped. It's one of those times when the public and the sharp guys are on the same side."

Durant injured his calf on May 9 in Game 5 of the Warriors' playoff series against the Houston Rockets. He has not played in a game since. Without him, Golden State has dropped three of four to the Raptors and is now facing elimination.

As of Monday afternoon, twice as much money had been bet on the Warriors as had been bet on the Raptors at MGM books, Stoneback said. The SuperBook at Westgate Las Vegas reported taking a $50,000 bet on the Warriors at Pick 'em and promptly made Golden State the favorite Monday afternoon.

The action was more evenly distributed at other sportsbooks. At Caesars Sportsbook, for example, 51.1 percent of the point-spread bets were on Toronto.

Durant is 25-1 to win Finals MVP at DraftKings sportsbook in New Jersey. The Raptors' Kawhi Leonard, at -500, is the favorite to win MVP.

Former Duke star and top NBA draft prospect RJ Barrett has made it clear he wants to play for the New York Knicks.

"I won't be meeting with any other teams," Barrett told reporters after working out with the Knicks on Monday. "This is the place I want to be, so I hope they draft me."

Barrett is the No. 3 prospect in the ESPN 100 and projected in ESPN's Jonathan Givony's latest mock draft to be drafted by the Knicks, who have the No. 3 pick.

However, it's still uncertain if the Knicks will end up keeping the pick, as they are among the teams inquiring with the New Orleans Pelicans about a trade for Anthony Davis, league sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.

Barrett, who turns 19 on Friday, broke Duke and ACC freshman scoring records while in college, averaging 22.6 points per game to go along with 7.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists.

The 6-foot-7 forward was the presumptive No. 1 pick going into his freshman season at Duke but was quickly overshadowed by the rise of teammate and fellow freshman Zion Williamson.

Williamson is projected to go first in the draft to the Pelicans, followed by Ja Morant, who's projected to go No. 2 to the Memphis Grizzlies.